Your calorie expenditure rate during exercise depends primarily on your activity level. MayoClinic.com provides typical calorie expenditures for various activities and body weights. You can also calculate your calorie expenditure with much greater accuracy when you take additional factors into account, such as age, weight, average heart rate and gender. This calculation is even more accurate when you take your VO2 max into account, which is the maximum rate at which you can use oxygen.
Step 1
Weigh yourself in pounds with a bathroom scale.
Step 2
Run as far as you can in 12 minutes and measure this distance in yards. Estimate your VO2 max with the equation (X - 505) / 49.2, where X is your maximum twelve minute running distance in yards. This will allow you to calculate your calorie expenditure rate for any exercise.
Say your 12-minute running distance is 1,822 yds. Your VO2 max is therefore (1,822 - 505) / 49.2 = 26.8.
Step 3
Record your average heart rate during your exercise with a heart monitor. Speed up or slow down as necessary to keep your heart rate within the range of 90 to 150 beats per minute, or bpm, during this period.
Step 4
Calculate the calorie expenditure rate per hour for females. This calculation uses the following equation: [(0.380 x VO2 max) + (0.450 x average heart rate) + (0.274 x age) + (0.0468 x weight) - 59.3954] x 60 / 4.184.
Let these variables be the following for this example: VO2 max of 25.4, average heart rate 128 bpm, age of 32 years and weight of 142 lbs. Your calories expenditure rate is [(0.380 x 25.4) + (0.450 x 128) + (0.274 x 32) + (0.0468 x 142) - 59.3954] x 60 / 4.184 = 334 calories per hour.
Step 5
Compute the calorie expenditure rate per hour for males. This calculation uses the following equation: [(0.404 x VO2 max) + (0.634 x average heart rate) + (0.271 x age) + (0.179 x weight) -- 95.7735] x 60 / 4.184.
Let these variables be the following for this example: VO2 max of 25.4, average heart rate 132 bpm, age of 44 years and weight of 168lbs. Your calories expenditure rate is [(0.404 x 25.4) + (0.634 x 132) + (0.271 x 44) + (0.179 x 168) -- 95.7735] x 60 / 4.184 = 576 calories per hour.
Things You'll Need
- Bathroom scale
- Stopwatch
- Calculator
- Heart monitor
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